SE Asia Stocks - Mixed; Thai shares near 15-month highs

BANGKOK, Aug 25 (Reuters) - The Thai benchmark index rose to

a near 15-month high on Monday as investors built positions in

shares with prospects of strong earnings amid hopes of political

stability while shares of plantation firms underperformed in

Southeast Asia.

Thai military leader General Prayuth Chan-ocha was endorsed

as prime minister by Thailand's king on Monday, paving the way

for the formation of an interim government.

The SET index edged up 0.4 percent to 1,563.03, the

highest since June 3, 2013, adding on a combined 0.9 percent

rise over the past four days.

"Domestic political developments have progressed slowly but

there are no positive surprises for the market. For the

meantime, the markets focus will remain on the cabinet lineup,"

broker Phillip Securities said in a report.

Shares of Airports of Thailand rose for a second

day to a record high. Broker Kt Zmico Securities upgraded the

airport operator's earnings estimates for fiscal year 2015 and

2016, citing the government's policy to boost tourism from

China.

"The Thai government's recent decision to waive visa fees

for Chinese tourists for three months to November in order to

boost the tourism industry is expected to be positive to AOT's

passenger volume in fiscal year 2015," the broker said.

Concerns about Indonesia's possible restriction of foreign

ownership of plantations hit planters with landbanks in the

Southeast Asian country, sending shares of Malaysia-listed IOI

Corporation to their lowest since March 10.

Shares of Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur Kepong lost

almost 3 percent and Singapore-listed Wilmar International

fell to its lowest since May 9.

"This attempt to cap foreign ownership will potentially

dampen sentiment already hit by weak CPO prices," said a Daiwa

Capital Markets report.

In Singapore, banking shares such as DBS Group Holdings

and Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation, led

gainers amid optimism about a plan to allow Singapore banks to

issue covered bonds (CBs).

"In our view, CBs are a low-cost and stable funding

alternative for Singapore banks, coming at a time of tightening

local liquidity," broker Maybank Kim Eng said in a report.

Stocks in Indonesia extended losses from Friday.

Shares of auto firm Astra International slid as

investors weighed in the risk of possible changes in the

government's fuel subsidy policy.

Vietnam's benchmark VN Index climbed 1.03 percent

amid technical-led buying. The Philippine stock market is shut

for a public holiday, and will reopen on Tuesday.

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SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS

Change at 0531 GMT

Market Current Prev Close Pct Move

TR SE Asia Index* 445.23 445.92 -0.16

Singapore 3339.88 3325.50 +0.43

Kuala Lumpur 1860.74 1870.99 -0.55

Bangkok 1563.03 1556.97 +0.39

Jakarta 5182.13 5198.89 -0.32

Ho Chi Minh 626.53 620.14 +1.03

* The Thomson Reuters South East Asia Index is a

highly representative indicator of stocks listed in Indonesia,

Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

(Reporting by Viparat Jantraprap; Additional reporting by

Fransiska Nangoy in JAKARTA Editing by Sunil Nair)